Title Thinking About Thinking

Author Anthony Flew

Year Published 1976

Kind of Book Rationality/Logic/Philosophy

How strongly I recommend it 6/10 

My Impressions I believe this book is out of print, but I found it used. It covers a few  common logical fallacies and general insights about logic. I was luke warm about it and didn't think there was much it covered that I hadn't read elsewhere.

Date Read June 2020

Practical Takeaways

  • Follow the argument wherever it leads (We must follow the argument wherever it leads)-Socrates

  • Say that a proposition is "true" or "false", not "valid" or "invalid"

  • Say that an argument is valid or invalid, not true or false

  • Don't make an assertion without knowing whether it is true or false-Abraham Lincoln

  • Be careful not to accept a fallacious argument just because you know its conclusion is true

  • Use the person's own logic to point out that their reasoning is incorrect (eg. According to that reasoning ___"

  • Find names for concepts and terms, so that you can quickly identify what is going on (eg. Confirmation bias, extinction burst etc.)-Arthur Schopenhauer

  • Only call something a fallacy when dealing with an error in argument, not a false conclusion

  • Don't attribute your opponents positions to those even more absurd or refutable than those which they actually maintain

  • Be open to accepting the falsification of your claims

  • Make sure a proposition denies something (otherwise it is a self-sealer and isn't really claiming anything (eg. If you are a libra you will either be open hearted or closed off)

  • Ask yourself "What would have to happen, or to have happened, to show that this statement is false, or that this theory is mistaken?" (ie. Unfalsifiable)

  • When someone is said to have some reason for believing a certain proposition, ask whether the reason proves it is true or if it proves that there is reason for believing it is true (whether or not it is) eg. Pascal's Wager

  • Make suitable parenthetical insertions whenever you employ an ambiguous word in a troublesome context eg. Funny (haha) funny (peculiar)

  • Make it a habit to note down all of the possible objections to your theory the moment you think of them-Charles Darwin

  • Don't dismiss a cliché truth claim just because it is a cliché

 

Big Ideas

  • Many people would sooner die than think.-Bertrand Russell

  • Every fallacy should be given a name, so that when someone commits one they can be told what they committed-Arthur Schopenhauer

  • Negative instances are more powerful than positive instances Because You can't prove anything for certain, but you can disprove it- Karl Popper

  • The consequences of not believing in God are much worse than the consequences FOR believing in God. Therefore We should all believe in God-Blaise Pascal

  • Considering examples of bad thinking helps you learn how to think better

 

Surprising Facts

  • For a mother 20yo her chance of having a child with disabilities is about 2 in 10,000; 30yo about 1 in 1,000; 40yo about 1 in 100; over 40 about 1 in 40

 

Unknown Terms

Proposition: Whatever may be asserted or denied 2)something offered for consideration or acceptance : proposal.

The that-clause: A test for determining whether or not something is a proposition. If it is a proposition, we will be able to say 'he asserted that __" or "he denied that ___"

Refutation: Not merely saying, but showing how a proposition is false 2) The act of disproving; the overthrowing of an argument, opinion, testimony, doctrine, or theory by argument or countervailing proof; confutation; disproof.

Compatriot: 1) An inhabitant of the same country with another; a fellow-countryman. 2)A colleague.

Contraband: anything prohibited by law from being imported or exported 2)illegal or prohibited traffic in goods : smuggling

Obscurantist: opposition to the spread of knowledge : a policy of withholding knowledge from the general public.

Recidivism: the act of a person repeating an undesirable behavior after they have either experienced negative consequences of that behavior, or have been trained to extinguish that behavior. It is also used to refer to the percentage of former prisoners who are rearrested for a similar offense. The term is frequently used in conjunction with criminal behavior and substance abuse.

Quantitative: of, relating to, or expressible in terms of quantity. 2)relating to numbers or amounts

Qualitative: Of, relating to, or concerning quality. 2)Relating to the nature or standard of something rather than is quantity